brown interview suit

Number 21.

I wore this suit to the interview I got a job for. I had two interviews one in Manchester and one in Horsham, I got the job in Manchester. It might be the only time I've worn it. I was 23.

I walked into the interview, with many papers: I'd decided, on the basis of my terrible experience of past interviews, to write down all the reason they should hire me so I could refer to them. I also had a bunch of papers relevant to the research.

I tripped and dropped them on the way in. I scrabbled around picking them up. I'm not sure if it was this, or the skills of the interviewers, but I relaxed and chatted away to them.

I was one of 46 applicants, they told me later. Well I think it was 46. I always wondered why they would have hired me instead of someone else. I thought I was rubbish at my job, which involved an experiment where I recorded responses then coded the phonemes people said. I had to learn the international phonemic alphabet. But, being Scottish, there were differentiations I couldn't make ( full vs fool, or pull vs pool) and ones I would make (horse vs hoarse and tied vs tide) but which weren't represented.

It was challenging.

Looking back, actually I think I was quite good. I'm not sure which is more accurate. But interesting how time colours things.